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ADDRESS 



DELIVERED BEFORE 



Theodore Winthrop Encampment 

IPOST 35, O. J^. I^., 



ACADEMY OF MUSIC, CHKLSEA, MASS. 



MEMORIAL DAY, MAY 30, 1873, 

By • 

MAJOR WILLIAM H. II O D G K I N S 



BOSTON: 
ROCKWELL AND CHURCHILL, PRINTERS, 

122 Washington Street. 
18 7 3. 



-V. 



ADDRESS 



DELIVERED BEFORE 



^L 



Theodore Wintlirop Encampment; 

IPOST 35, a-. -A.. I^., 

AT 

ACADEMY OF MUSIC, CHELSEA, MASS., 
MEMOIUAL DAY, MAY 30, 1873. 

By 

y 

MAJOR W I L L I A I\I H . H O D G K I N S . 



-BOSTON: 
ROCKWELL AND CHURCHILL, PRINTERS, 

122 Washington Street. 

18 73. 



^V' 



ADDRESS. 



Mr. Commander and Comrades of Theodore Winihrop 

JEncamjrment : — 

We arc reminded by the prayer, the hymns, the poem, 
and by the address of His Honor the Mayor, that the glory 
of a nation is not in its institutions, or its natural advan- 
tages, not iu its history, but in its men; and we rejoice to-day 
that, iu the dark period of her history, America has not been 
wanting in true, brave men, who were willing to sacrifice life 
in defence of her liberties and honor. 

I approach the duty your favor has assigned me, realizing 
how uttcrl}' inadequate are human words to rightly express 
our emotions as we engage in a jNIemorial service dear to 
every loyal heart, and deeply conscious that I may not s[)eak 
as you or I could wish, of your local history or of the per- 
sonal character and individual actions of the men whose 
names you revere. 

Time in its unceasing flight has swiftly rolled away another 
year, and again at the appointed time, in this glad opening 
season, wc assemble to pay homage to the mcmor}' of the 
patriot dead. So great was the number who sacrificed life 
in defence of the republic that there are few indeed among 
us who have not some relative or friend or dear companion 
now sleeping in soldiers' graves. 



Many topics suggest themselves to the mind of one called 
to address you to-day. 

I might speak of the early history and glory of the nation, 
and her indebtedness to her citizen soldiers, of the resplen- 
dent future that awaits our country, of the relation of the 
soldier to the various political problems of the day, — but I 
shall speak only of that past history which records the noble 
conduct of our fallen comrades in the great struggle for the 
supremacy of law and order over treason. 

We consecrate this hour and service to tender memories 
of these our comrades and friends. 

" Blest are the martj'red dead who lie 
In holy graves for freedom won, 
Whose storied deeds can never die, 
While coming years tiieir cycles run." 

Onr hearts swell with unwonted emotion as we recall the 
hour, twelve years ago, when the first dread sound of war 
■was heard throughout the land, and the call went forth for 
men to arm and defend the Capital of the Nation. That cry 
awoke response in every loj^al heart. " From every valley 
in our northern land, froml every cabin by the pleasant moun- 
tain side, from the ships at our Avluirvcs, from the tent of the 
hunter on our westernmost prairies, from the living minds of 
the living millions of American freemen the shout went up 
like the sound cjf many waters — The Union, it must he pre- 
served!" The land re-echoed with strains of martial music, 
calling our comrades from the peaceful pursuits of industry 
to rally around the banner of the nation and go forward as 
men to vindicate the honor and dignityof the republic 



assailed by malignant and misguided foes. The opening 
scenes of the Revolution were re-enacted with a spirit worthy 
of the revolutionary sires. Again the plough was left in the 
furrow, again private and selfish interests "were forgotten, 
and with a cheerfulness and courage far above our feeble 
praise, our comrades submitted to the irksome duties of the 
camp, and sought by every means to prepare for a soldier's 
life. What thrilling emotions crowd the soul as we at this 
distant day recall the memory of that great uprising of '61 ! 
How we love to linger over the record so momentous and 
inspiring! Again we hear the drum beat! — the tramp, 
tramp, tramp of the mustering thousands, — again a faithful 
memory photographs the stirring scenes of the commence- 
ment of the bloody drama. Well do I remember the noble 
spirit with which this city responded to the sunmions of the 
President; and when the strife had long continued, and hope 
seemed trembling, when oft-repeated calls had been 
answered even with the sacrifice of your bravest and best, — 
your patriotic exertions were never abated, but true to the 
promptings of freedom and right, your energies were quick- 
ened, and the l)rave men in the field were encouraged by still 
larger reinforcements from your firesides and homes. 

In the vast army and navy of the republic, — composed of 
men of almost every nationality and of various political 
creeds, serving under one banner, sworn to maintain a com- 
mon cause, — the question of state or local distinction was of 
minor imp( rtance and seldom considered. Arrayed in a 
soldier's honored garb, they went forth to battle for a Nation, 
and not for a State. Local and sectional pride and atttich- 
ment were subordinated to exalted love of country. The 



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banner floating above them, on the land and on the sea, was 
the flag of the Union, and not an emblem of a State ! Side 
b}^ side in the thickest of the fight were borne the Avhite flag 
of Massachusetts and the colors of every loyal State, and yet 
better and dearer than one or all of these were the stars and 
stripes of the republic. The binding obligations of the 
Union and the supremacy of the Constitution were to be 
maintained in opposition to the pernicious theor}^ of the 
rights of Slates, Avhich for more than thirty yeius had been 
nurtured in a Southern soil, and fostered by a Southern sun. 
The glorious heritage of our fathers, the Union of the States, 
was endangered. The beacon-light of political freedom to 
the oppressed of all the world was threatened Avith extin- 
guishment, and to defend and preserve this and the great 
charter of our own freedom — the Constitution of the 
United States — you buckled on the harness and went forward 
to battle, and, if need be, to die. To commeuiorate this 
national patriotism, as well as to honor the noble dead, all 
over our broad land to-day the surviviug comrades of the 
Grand Army of the Republic, forsaking the pursuits of busy 
life, and wearing again the insignia of their service, have 
assembled in consecrated burial-places and memorial-halls, 
and with prayer and dirge and eulogy revive the memory 
of those brave spirits who, in the darkest hour of the nation's 
history, freely relinquished the delights and comforts of 
home and friends, and with devoted patriotism surrendered 
life itself. And, conn-ades, we rejoice that we are not left 
to perform this delightful and tender duty alone. The spirit 
of the age demanding reverence for the patriot dead speaks 
in loud tones to all. The ofiicial representatives of our 



towns and cities all unite, and reverend age and tender child- 
hood vie with us in adding a laurel to the hero's wreath of 
fame.) 

It IS proper, however, that every locality should take 
special pride in its own record of service during the war, and 
on this National Memorial Day we are permitted to narrow 
the circle of our thought, and enjoy the privilege of review- 
ing our own j^articular history. 

In this mighty struggle for national existence, the city 
of Chelsea performed an honored and distinguished part, 
and has a local history of which it may be justly proud. 
From a population, which at the commencement of the 
war numbered but little more than thirteen thousand souls, 
3^ou sent to the field and gun-deck more than twenty-two 
hundred men, one hundred and forty-five of whom were 
commissioned to bear the sword of ofiicial power. Of this 
large contingent, two thousand one hundred and eight 
served in the army and one hundred and thirty-eight in the 
navy, being a surplus of one hundred and ninety- four above 
every call for troops. More than two full regiments of men ! 
Four entire companies of your husbands, brothers and sons 
Avere recruited here, and in addition you had honored repre- 
sentatives in almost every regiment, battery and detachment 
that left our State ; in the regular army, iu the regiments of 
twelve loyal States, and in every fleet that carried the Union 
flao-. From drummer-boy to brigadier, from cabin-boy to 
naval commander, they everywhere and always reflected credit 
upon the city that sent them forth. Aside from large sums 
of money contributed by churches, societies aud individuals, 
which are recorded only in heaven, the amount of money for 



Avar expenses of the city, including the State aid paid to the 
families of volunteers, reached the splendid sum of three 
hundred thousand dollars. No city of our beloved Comnion- 
Avealth can point to a moi'e uoble and honored record. Of 
the gallant band of men who were your representatives in 
the service, one hundred and thirty-three were killed in bat- 
tle, or died of wounds or exposure, and one hundred and fifty 
more bear honorable scars, some having been wounded many 
times. There has been no loyal army the shout of whose 
triumph has not drowned the dying groan of a son of Chelsea ; 
no victory in all that long, terrible period of civil war which 
her blood has not helped to win ! This, comrades, is a record 
of which, on this Memorial Day, you need not blush ! 

And 3'et not alone by the soldiers and sailors of Chelsea 
has her fair reputation been sustained. The loyal, loving, 
bleeding hearts at home rejoiced with you in every victory, 
and wept in hours of sadness and defeat. They followed you 
Avith prayers and benedictions, and in the hour of calamity 
and sorroAV expressed the feelings of their hearts in words 
hkc these : — 

" Resolved, That it is eniineiitl\- due alike to tlie noble cause for which our 
heroes have fallen, to the universal sense of justice and gratitude, to the 
natural and sijontancous emotions of the hour, and especially to the feelings 
of the relatives and friends of the gallant dead, and of their surviving com- 
rades on the field, that the connnunity under whose endorsement and protection 
these patriot soldiers went forth to encounter the hardships and perils of War, 
should publicly commemorate that heroism and fidelity which have been thus 
sadly and \-et gloriouslj' sealed in death." 

The records of the lives of the men of Chelsea furnish 
instances of personal valor, devotion, self-denial and sacrifice 



9 



worthy of especial praise, too numerous to be recounted in 
this brief memorial service. How would we love to call the 
honored roll, and rehearse the praise of each I They all per- 
formed their heaven-appointed Avork, and did it well. From 
the equality of death we single out no names, nor dwell on 
special virtues possessed by some, and pass unmcntioned 
those whose claim for remembrance is the one great sacrifice 
of life. All are our heroes ! We love and venerate all. 
But I should do injustice to my own feelings should I refrain 
from alluding to one who to-day is honored by the entire 
community for his effcn-ts in behalf not onl}- of his own 
peculiar charge, the soldiers of Chelsea, but of every loyal 
man who wore the l)lue. It was the good fortune of Chelsea, 
to her glory be it said, to possess, during the war, chief 
magistrates, whose hearts were not only right, but one 
especially, who left his home, and during the years of wan- 
dering, struggle, defeat and tinal victor}^ of the Army of the 
Potomac, on the march, the battle-field and in the hosfutal, 
cheered and sustained the war-worn, suffering soldier, who 
was bearing the heat and l)urden of the day. Having per- 
sonally experienced his kindness and witnessed his devotion, 
I iiladly seize this passing moment to pay my humble tri))ute 
to the lofty patriotism and unselfish, noble service of one 
whose name I need not speak. 

If language fails fitly to express admiration of the deeds 
of valiant men, what power can we invoke to aid us in 
attempting to portray the devotion of noble women? We 
commemorate to-day true bravery wherever displayed, and 
pay tribute to the love and devotion manifested by woman to 
her country and its defenders. In computing the sufi'ering 



10 

caused by (be war too low nn estimate is made of tlie sac- 
rifices of our ]o3al women, wbo toiled, prayed, waited, liop- 
ing against bope during tbe years of wai-. How many sit in 
bomes wbence tbe ligbt bas departed, waiting for tbe coming 
of bin) wbo went fortb never to retiu-n ! How many sur- 
rendered in busband, biotber, or son, all tbat made life dear, 
and now long only for tbe glad reunion above ! How many 
beaiing a crusbing weigbt of sorrow went to tbe field to 
ligbten tbe pains and sorrows of otbers ! How maii}^ with 
almost breaking bearts join tenderly with us in the decoration 
of our comrades' graves ! 

To the comparatively small number of women wbo Avere 
enabled to leave home and render conspicuous s^^rvice to the 
sick and wour.ded soldiers, tbe City of Chelsea contributed 
two of tbe noblest and best. One, Mrs. Pomero}', who, 
1 am informed is to-da}' in this temple, tbe other, Miss Helen 
L. Gilson, who is in the temple on high. The presence of 
the living forbids the words of praise we would gladly utter, 
while justice to the one who bas gone demands a passing 
tribute to her memory and service. None of the loyal band 
of women have rendered more noble service than Helen L. 
Gilson. The occasion admits of but the briefest outline of 
her character and life. When the civil war commenced 
she was among the first to organize Soldiers' Aid .Societies, 
and })rovided employment for the wives and daughters of 
soldiers who were in straitened circumstances. Early in 
18G2 she went to the army as a muse. AVell educated, 
endowed with great nnisical and conversational talent, she 
endeared herself to the soldiers by her gentle attentions, her 
sweet voice, and her great executive power. During the 



11 



bloody years of 1864 and '65, she administered comfort and 
relief to tliousands of the severely wounded and dying. She 
also organized and conducted for many months a hospital for 
one thousand patients of the siclv and wounded colored 
soldiers of the Army of the Potomac . 

Absorbed in her work, unconscious of the spiritual beauty 
which invested her daily life, she was al\va3^s the same pres- 
ence of grace and love, of peace and benediction. And so 
through all the war, from the seven dnys' conflict on the 
Peninsula in those early July days of Trl, through all the 
campaigns of the Ai'ni}' of the Potomac, she labored stead- 
fastly on until the end. Through scorching heat and pinch- 
ing cold, in the tent or upon the open tield, in the ambulance 
or in tlic saddle, through rain and snow and unseen perils of 
the enemy, under fire on the field of battle, or in the more 
insidious dangers of contagion, she worked quietly on, doing 
her glorious part with all womanly tact and skill, clothed with 
•purity and mercy, being, — 

" In the great history of the land, 
A noble type of good, 
Pleroic woiiianhood." 

Soon after the closing of the war her overtasked powers 
failed, and she died in 1868, at the the eaily age of thirty- 
three, a martyr to her patriotism and philanthropy. Her 
part in the long death-struggle of her country had scarcely 
ended when she was called to enter into her rest, and hear, 
as she passed through the gate into the Kingdom of the 
Blessed, the words of welcome, " Inasmuch as ye have done 
it unto one of the least of these, ye have done it unto Me." 



12 

Antl now the survivors of the giill.-iiit Third Army Corps, 
and the comrades of the Grand Army of the Eepuhlic, 
desire to erect a monument to this devoted woman, amonsf 
the memorials of the war. It is a tribute richly merited 
and dearly won ! Citizens of Chelsea, when these soldiers 
ask you for material aid in this tribute of respect to her 
memory, do not, I bceech you, for the love you bear the 
city she has honored, withhold anything they request. Let 
a monument of marble, pure and spotless as her character, 
be erected here, connnemorating the life and service of one 
who is as much a martyr to the cause of freedom and 
humanit}^ as any who have perished in the blood}' strife. 

There is a proverb, familiar I fear to many surviving 
soldiers, " Republics are ungrateful." We have heard this 
from our earliest days. Is there danger of its fulfilment in 
our own experience? When the clods of the valle}' cover the 
soldier's form, his faults are forgotten, and his virtues, pat- 
riotism and sutierings are eulogized by those who, when he 
was living, had the power to assist him, l)ut have withheld his 
righteous due. True, many soldiers have been the recipients 
of distinguished honors, but I fear I am not alone in observ- 
ing that in the movement for official power and fmie, the 
order of attack is reversed, — the line of battle, the rank and 
file, the men who did the fighting, are far in the rear, and the 
generals and coloubls go bravely to the front. These 
officers of high rank ai-e sent on foreign missions and to Con- 
gress, and made governoi's of States ; while subaltern'^, i)ri- 
vates, and hardy tars, do, as they did of old, the police and 
drudgery of the camp and ship. Far be it trom me in this 
memorial hour to detract one jot from the well-earned reward. 



13 

the glorious fame of any soldier, living or dead. Far be it 
from me to interpose any objection to the selection of men 
who held high rank in the service for the iniportant civil 
positions. In honoring these, all wlio wore the blue are 
honored. I know of many brave and noble chiefs who have 
been elevated to high social and political distinction, as a 
reward for service in the field. On the principle that brains 
were required to command in the service, brains are alike 
required in those who occupy civic stations. I do not object 
to the honor bestowed on the eagles and the stars, — I claim 
only an equal opportunit}' for thoscf who during the war, 
through force of crrcumstances, possessed inferior adv^antages 
and not inferior ability ! During the final campaign of the 
Army of the Potomac, many of its brigades and divisions 
Avere commanded by men who left home, three years before, 
in the ranks or in the line. The most 2;allant and distinofuished 
general had a counterpart in the ranks. The commander 
Avas a leader only by virtue of followers. Many generals 
have recognized tliis truth, but none more fully than the late 
Commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, the 
renowned General Burnside, who on every occasion bears 
testimony' to the bravery and fidelity of the coujmon soldier, 
and whose general orders alter a victory or campaign were 
filled with expressions of his lasting obligations to the men 
of the line ! 

I have in mind to-day, men who for three long years car- 
ried the musket, endured the hardships (^f cani[)aign, the 
scanty fare and p^y, the midnight picket, the thousand 
dcpiivations unknown to those more fortunate, shall I add, 
without a murmur, declining repeated offers of promotion. 



14 

and, Avhen honorably miistefetl out, returned, some to the 
pulpit to proclaim the \ove of God, some to the school and 
the college to teach the young the great lessons of patriotism, 
some to the professor's or editor's chair, to diiect the 
thoughts of thousands, others still to honondjle and responsi- 
ble positions in all the walks of life. I claim simple justice 
for these, and when the honors or the patronage of the 
nation they saved is bestowed, let them not be forgotten. 
■When 1 witness the daily etforts of one of your own com- 
rades to punish ihose who inflict cruelty upon the dumb and 
unoUeiiding beast, I ck'voutly wish he could exercise the 
same power and authority to bring to justice those who 
bestow abuse on men who have loved and served their 
country. 
^ In a few brief years the last maimed soldier at the street 
corner will have ceased to grind the ill-timed oi'gan, the 
last crutch and em[)ty sleeve, relics of oiw war, will 
have disa[)[)eared, and all traces of the great stiaiggle 
will have vanished. Shall 1 ask you to l)estow pity and 
charity on these weak and broken ones, who have others 
whom God has given, dependent upon them? Shall I ask 
for i)ity for those who have relinquished their claims to wealth 
and fame, and who stitlered for ^'ou? No! I demand their 
just, well-earned reward ! liepay, not pit}^ them ! When 
our fallen hiothers were callcMl n[)on to take the last farewell 
kiss of mother, w'ii'c, or child, and leave these seeiies so dear, 
their hearts were cheereil and sustained hy the oft-repeated 
promise that the dear ones left behind should be defended 
and tenderly cared for. The memory of this gave vigor to 
their tlagging footsteps in many a weary march, inspired 
them in hunger, pain, and languishing, and nerved their arm 



15 

ill the hour of deadly conflict. In fulfllment of this assur- 
ance, these otfei-ings have been brought to-day, and the 
mounds that mark their resting-places will be decixcd with 
the choicest gifts of nature, expressing, more eh-qucntly than 
words, the affection and esteem for those wh.ose names and 
meuiories are all that is left us. Comrades, we uieet as 
mourners to-day, though the bitterness of death is i)ast, for 
there' were those iu the grand old army who were bound to 
us by closest ties, — for there is no friendship so strong and 
abiding as that formed in mutual suflering, — uo union of 
hearts more sacred than that cemented by the heart's best 
blood. 

Engaging in this hallowed task, we feel the same strange 
influence which wrought upon the old Freuch soldier, who, 
after a long and varied service in the German wars/ scarred 
and woru and weary, he came on his homeward march to the 
baidvs of the Ehine which separated him from his behaved 
France. As he gazed upon his native land his heart was 
filled with emotions of tenderness, as memory' recalled two 
beloved comrades who, thirty years before, iu the flush and 
strcugth of early manhood, had crossed that same streaui 
w^ilh him, and whose bones had for longj'ears been bleachin<>' 
u[)ou the fields of Germany. He was ferried across the 
river, and as his feet touched his native soil, he took the price 
of three fares from his purse aud said : — 

" Take, O boatman, thricu tli}' fee, 
TalvG, T give it willingly ; 
For invisible to tliee 
Spirits twain bave crossed witli me." 



l(i 



As wc have m:i relied these streets have we not been con- 
scious of an unseen presence? Cannot we recall some com- 
rade dear, Avho has drank with us from the same canteen, and 
with whom we have shared our last morsel of bread, by 
Avhose side we have marched in mud or d'ust or heat, whose 
cares and griefs and joys were ours ? Cannot we remember 
one with whom we have sat long at the blazing camp-fire, and 
talked of far-off home, and then, after a doubtful day and in 
promise of a more doubtful morrow, lay d(;wn to share the 
blanket in his last bivouac on earth? Ah, yes ! many here 
can recall one such friend ! Wa remember, too, the waking 
from that bivouac, the stern orders the returning daylight 
brought, the forming for attack, the slow adxance, the quick, 
rattling fire of the skirmishers, and then the dust and din 
and t'uvy of the strife, the final charge, the shock, the vic- 
tory ! We seek for our comrade, but he has fallen ! We 
search for him among the wounded, mangled forms, and find 
him gently breathing out his life. We take his nerveless 
hand and look into his fast glazing eyes. He is going home ! 
His last battle has been fought. The order for his discharge 
has come ! No more weary marches ! No more fruitless 
char"-es ! No more hunger and thirst and midnight watch- 
ing ! — all that is done. Wc bow to catch his dying whisper, 
"Take care of my wife and child," and his heroic soul has 
passed on to join the unseen armies of the skies ! Beneath 
some spreading tree we make his humble grave. We rudely 
carve his name upon the tree, and before high Heaven we 
vow to do for his dear ones what we would have our com- 
rades do for us I 

Standing to-day in this presence, what memories of the 



17 



p:ist throng around us ! See that long procession of the 
fallen from the battle-fields of freedom. From Ball's Bluff, 
the Peninsula and Antietam, from Roanoke and Newberne, 
and the mountain wilds of Tennessee, from the heights of 
Gettysburg, and the jungles of the Mississippi, from Port 
Hudson and the Gulf, from the slaughter of the Wilderness 
and Cold Harbor, from the dismal trenches and bomb-proofs 
of Petersburg and Richmond, these proud meniDries come 
trooping, filling the soul with emotions unutterable, consti- 
tuting one of the richest legacies of the servicc^^ 

But there are other o^raves, on which no lovinfi: hand will 
bestow its floral tribute, upon which no tear will fall. Far 
away from home, in lonely thickets where no friendly eye 
could see them fall, by mountain stream, on rivers' banks, 
in rude and unknown graves, or entombed in ocean depths, 
they sleep, those unnamed heroes of the war. In the dark 
night of strife, before the sun of Peace had illumined the 
sky, the}'^ passed away. How many hearts still refuse to be 
comforted because they know not the resting-place of their 
loved ones ! But though we cannot visit their graves, we 
can cherish their memories. Sleep on, noble martyrs, and 
take the rest your swords have won ! Your sacrifice was not 
offered in vain. No I no ! my fallen comrades, ye did not 
die in vain ! We do not forget you ; the cause for which you 
died was triumphant ! A nation disenthralled, a race eman- 
cipated, a government re-established ; these are your noblest 
monuments ! For you we rear the triumphal arch, for you 
the Memorial Hall, for you the stately shaft emblazoned with 
your names and adorned with the emblems of your service 
and your fate. Ye did not die in vain. Ye did not fail. 



18 



" They never fail who die 
In a great cause ; the block may soak their gore ; 
Their heads may sodden in tlie sun, their limbs 
Be strung to city gates and castle walls ; 
But still their spirit walks abroad." I 

To me, comrades, it is a beautiful thought that this ser- 
vice is intended not only to preserve the memory of those 
T\'ho laid down their lives during the late conflict, but for all 
soldiers and sailors who have performed honorable service, 
and Avho, one by one, shall pass on to tlie unseen Avorld. 
Each succeeding year places a new name upon the roll of the 
valiant dead, and adds a fresh mound to receive the floral 
offering. We are reminded to-day not only of the rapid 
fli<iht of time, but of the more solemn fact that man is mor- 
tal. The dead line is all around us. Since the last Memo- 
rial Da}^, five members of your own encampment, who, onl}'- 
one brief 3ear ago, united with you in this service, among 
the man}' of the brave and true, have been summoned from 
your midst and arc now sleeping in the dust of earth. We 
are sadly reminded that the noble army of the Union is 
crossing the river, and forming on the other side. Ah-eadjs 
all the great controlling minds of the war administration have 
oeen called away, and within the year the illustrious com- 
mander, General Meade, who at Gettysburg stemmed the 
inrolling tide 'of rebel invasion, and whose name is inseparably 
linked with that of the greatest battle of "the war, has gone to 
his reward. 

Nor would we forget in this Memorial, one, who thoiigh 
not mustered into actual service in the field, was a true- 
hearted soldier, and deserves the tribute of esteem, the 



19 



lamented General Schouler, the Adjutant General of the 

State during the entire war, the confidant and friend of the 

great War Governor; kind, gentlemanl}^ considerate, alike 

the friend of every loyal soldier and sailor who left the State, 

and who in the later years of his life has erected a noble 

monument to himself in his history, " Massachusetts in the 

Civil War." 

And during the past week the soil of Indiana has received 

the earthly remains of the good General Gmby, and to-day 

his grave receives the floral tribute. Serving with dis- 
cs c3 

tinction throu2:hout the war, declining the ease and comfort 
of an Eastern command, and volunteering on a mission that 
had for its design the pacific settlement of our frontier 
troubles, in the full strength of his manhood and the zenith 
of his fame — in an instant, without a moment's warning, he 
was shot down like a dog by a bloodthirsty, perfidious sav- 
age — the victim of a treachery as horrible as any recorded 
in our history. 

" Worn by no wasting, lingering pain, 
No slow gradations of decay, 
Death broke at once the vital chain 
And freed liis soul the nearest way." 

He fell a martyr to the cause of humanity, to his own noble 
purpose to avoid a flow of blood. Dying a soldier's death, 
though not at a soldier's hand, he was as truly a martyr as 
thoudi he had fallen in the' grandest battle of the war. 
These, with thousands from all the loyal band have gone 
from the armies below to the hosts above. 

Let your imagination picture the scone, when the last sur- 
viving comrade of this Post, bowed with age, sh ill make a 



20 



pilgrimage to the cemeteries of this place to scatter flowers 
upon the graves of all his companions. No orator's voice 
will be required to add i)athos and eloquence to that occa- 
sion, but a vast company will assemble to shower blessings 
and benedictions upon his devoted head, and to assure him 
that when he, too, shall sleep beneath the sod, his memory 
shall be fragrant, and children's hands shall pour the treasures 
of nature upon his hallowed grave ! 

And now, comrades, you are to march in solemn procession 
to the consecrated spot where heroes sleep, and place above 
their honored dust the tribute of your love, the emblems of 
your undoing affection. As you engage in the loving service 
the spirits of the noble ones will attend you. From the 
home of the I lessed, a great cloud of witnesses will behold 
you and rejoice in the memorial honor. Green, ever green, 
be their memories ! Blessed, thrice blessed is the land 
that can boast such defenders as these ! 

Not alone for what they were, when in manly form they 
walked these streets, or in the flush of youth, or the promise 
of early manhood, they nobly enlisted in their country's 
service. Not alone for what they were, when in the fore- 
front of the advancing hosts, or on the bloody, splintered 
deck, they met their fate as by the lightning stroke. Not 
alone for their sublime heroism, when languishing in hospi- 
tals or prison-pens they calmly awaited the approach of the 
dread messenger. No, not for these alone, do we bestow 
this grateful ofiering ! But for what they are to-day 1 They 
are not dead ! Far more alive are they than we ! They are 
still our comrades, bound to us by ties of battle-blood. They 



21 



are still our companions in the brotherhood of man. The 
spirit that inspired them animates us. 

" By communion of the Banner, 
Battle-scarred and glorious Banner, 
By baptism of the Banner, 
Brothers of one church are we ! " 

^ Here, then, at this shrine of patriotism let us renew our 
allegir.nce to the great principles that animated our fore- 
fathers and our comrades, as they freely sacrificed themselves 
for the nation's honor and glory. Let us emulate their vir- 
tues and courage, and prove ourselves worthy of such noble 
lineage. Let us guard and cherish the memories of the 
heroic dead. Let us protect and support the maimed and 
helpless, and succor the widow and fatherless. The flowers 
we this clay strew upon the graves shall wither and fade, the 
names carved upon the head-stones may be obliterated, the 
monuments may crumble and fall to dust, even the remem- 
brance of the memorial-day may perish, succeeding genera- 
tions may fail to recall our service or our names, and we may 
be utterly forgotten ; but let us remember that every true and 
noble deed, every aspiration for Eight and Virtue, is recorded 
on high, Jives and will live forever. 

" These shall resist the empire of decay 
When time is o'er and worlds have passed away, 
Cold in the dust the perished heart may lie. 

But that which warmed it once can never die." 

» 

And as our descendants and successors, through all the 
future history of the mition shall read of the mighty deeds of 
their sires, may they be filled with gratitude to their coun- 



22 



tr3*'s God, and as they contemplate their divine defiyerance, 
sing as did the children of Ancient Israel, in the language of 
the Psalmist, ascribing to God the praise: — "We have 
heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what 
work thou didst in their days in the times of old. For the}'' 
got not the land in possession by theii- own sword, neither 
did their own arm save them, but thy right hand and thine 
arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a 
favor unto them." j 

Mr. Commander, I regard it especially appropriate that 
you have chosen for the closing exercise of this memoria 
service, the singing of that glorious hymn " America." It 
was for America — our country — that our comrades died. 
Let us sing it with full hearts. Sing it as we have sung it 
at the head of the marching columns of the Army of Free- 
dom. Sing it as w^e have sung it in the dark days of the* 
war, and in the hour of victory : — 

" My countn', 'tis of thee 
Sweet land of liberty, 

Of thee I sing, 
Land of the pilgrim's pride, 
Land where my fathers died, 
From every mountain side 
Let freedom ring." 



